


Behind the screen

by LonelyAngel



Category: Twenty One Pilots
Genre: Anxiety, Awkwardness, Boys Kissing, Characters Reading Fanfiction, Comfort, Coming Out, Fan!Josh, First Meet, Fluff and Humor, Light Angst, Love Confessions, M/M, Youtuber!Tyler, alternate universe - youtuber, famous!tyler
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-31
Updated: 2019-02-10
Packaged: 2019-10-20 00:01:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,369
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17611586
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LonelyAngel/pseuds/LonelyAngel
Summary: Tyler is a youtuber. Josh is his biggest fan.They meet at an airport.





	1. Chapter 1

Josh looked at the big digital clock at the wall of the terminal and sighed.

It was early in the morning, really early and Josh was at the Atlanta airport, waiting until it was time for boarding the plane.

It was his first time travelling all alone, since the person he had travelled to Atlanta with flew home earlier and he was an anxious mess. Anxiety always had been a problem for Josh, but he tried to ignore it.

He was flying home back to Columbus and couldn't wait to see his family again. The thought of finally being at home again helped to ease his nerves.

Because Josh had been incredibly scared to miss the plane, he had arrived over three hours early, but now he realized waiting at an airport all alone was incredibly boring.

Sitting down and placing his backpack on the seat next to him, he looked around, feeling a bit lost. The waiting area was almost empty, beside a couple that was sitting a few rows away, both of them sleeping soundly leaned against each other.

A few other people were around, but they all looked tired and didn't pay attention to the others. Occasionally, someone would get up to get a snack or leave to get to the right gate, but most of the people around were on their phone or listening to music.

Josh really stuck out with his green hair and his bright red UkuleleRapBoy shirt.

UkuleleRapBoy's real name was Tyler Joseph and he was a youtube star. He did all kinds of challenges in his videos and Josh adored him.

He wanted to be like Tyler, who had over 7 million followers on his youtube channel and was gaining more every day.

Josh's channel only had about two hundred followers, probably because he was just posting drum covers.

Still, Josh wasn't jealous. He had been there from the beginning, when Tyler only had a few thousands followers. He had witnessed how Tyler's hard work had finally started to pay off, saw him embarrass himself in public in his vlogs and videos and saw his channel grow to what it was today.

He was a die hard fan and of course owned Tyler's merch, like the shirt he was wearing right now.

But he wasn't only a fan, he also had a big fat crush on the youtuber. He dreamed of meeting Tyler one day, although he'd probably be too nervous to speak.

One time, Tyler had given away tickets for a meet and greet and of course Josh had put his name up there, hoping two win.

He hadn't won and five other lucky fans had had the chance to meet their idol. Josh had been bummed for a week when he saw the video Tyler posted of the meet and greet, but now he was hoping Tyler would do an event like this again soon. To kill some time at the airport, he decided to read some Tyler Joseph fanfiction. It was his new found hobby and he loved reading all the different stories, making him feel closer to his idol. And it felt like he could have a chance as a gay guy, because real-life Tyler was straight. This time, Josh chose a gender-neutral reader insert fic and it was amazing. It was funny and dramatic and Josh had to suppress a laugh more than once. Right when he thought it couldn't get better, the smutty part started.

He felt his cheeks heat up when it started getting explicit. This was his secret fantasy, written down on paper- well, a screen. He was completely focused on the way Tyler's body was described when-

"Oh, I like that." someone said right next to his ear and Josh flinched, almost dropping the phone.

He caught it right before it slipped out of his hand and froze when he realized he had heard this voice before.

Slowly, he turned his head and half jumped, half fell from his seat with a yelp when he saw who stood behind him.

Josh's butt hit the floor and the guy behind him started laughing.

Josh blinked. He blinked again.

Tyler fucking Joseph stood in front of him and was doubling over in laughter.

After a few seconds, the youtube star wiped his eyes with a chuckle, climbed over the back of the seats and reached out. "Sorry, man, I didn't mean to scare you. But I have to say, your reaction was hilarious."

Josh stared at Tyler's outstretched hand dumbfounded. Hesitantly, he grabbed it, trying not to freak out, because the fact that this was Tyler Joseph and he was touching him was everything.

Tyler's hand was really soft and it was another reason for Josh to love him. His mind was blank, all he could think was: What the fuck is he doing here?

Tyler looked amazing, even better in real life. He was a little bit taller than Josh and it was so, so hot. Josh's legs felt like jelly and he could feel his heart hammering against his ribs.

"Dude, are you okay?" Tyler asked and Josh realized he never let go of Tyler's hand. He awkwardly dropped his hand to the side.

"Uh yeah." He laughed nervously. "I'm just... wow. You're real."

"I am." Tyler grinned, maybe a little bit condescending and gestured to Josh's shirt. "You're a fan, right?"

"No." Josh said without thinking. It wasn't his fault, he was panicking and all his brain cells decided it was a good idea to shut his brain down at the moment.

Tyler furrowed his brows. "Oh, I thought-"

"I am." Josh interrupted him shakily. "A fan, I mean."

"I don't understand." Tyler said. Josh could see the confusion on his face.

"Uh, I'm a big fan. That’s…That's what I wanted to say. A really big fan."

"Oh." Tyler's smile turned into a smirk. "I could tell. Interesting book you were reading."

Realizing Tyler had seen the fanfiction Josh had been reading was like a shock to him. Immediately, his cheeks turned pink and his entire body felt hot with shame.

"I...I don't…" he stuttered.

"What was it again? _Tyler placed his hands on your hips, leaning in for a kiss and you could feel his throbbing erection against your thigh?_ " Tyler cocked his head and Josh hoped for something that would help him out of this embarrassing situation. Maybe an earthquake or a sudden flash flood.

He opened his mouth to defend himself but nothing came to his mind.

" _He said: I want to fuck you with my huge cock and make you mine._ " Tyler kept going and Josh felt so dizzy and embarrassed he had to sit down, his mind racing.

Just when he felt Tyler's hands on his knees he realized Tyler had stopped talking and instead had crouched down in front of him.

"Hey, look at me." Tyler said and Josh bit his lip, realizing his eyes were brimming with tears.

He turned his head to the side, too ashamed to look at Tyler. His anxiety went through the roof and he started shaking.

"What's your name?" Tyler asked quietly.

"Josh." He whispered, squeezing his eyes shut. He wanted to shake Tyler's hands off his knees and run away, but he couldn't move. He tried to fight the anxiety that made his chest feel too tight to breathe, but it felt like he was drowning.

"Josh, listen to me." Tyler said softly. "Concentrate on me. It's okay. I'm not mad or... weirded out or whatever. I don't care if you enjoy reading fanfiction, okay? I'm sorry for making you feel bad about it, I shouldn't've made fun of it. Look at me, please."

This time, Josh took a deep breath and looked at him through wet eyelashes.

"I'm sorry. Let's forget about it, okay?" Tyler asked.

"I-I'm sorry." Josh whispered and Tyler gave him a heartwarming smile.

"It's okay, Josh. Everything's alright." He patted Josh's knees and withdrew his hands. "Can I sit down?"

Josh nodded weakly and grabbed his backpack to place it on the floor.

Tyler sat down next to him and sighed. "So, what are you doing here, Josh?" he asked.

"Flying back home to Columbus." Josh said quietly and wiped his eyes.

"Dude, I'm from Columbus, too!" Tyler grinned and Josh couldn't help but smile.

"I know."

"Right. You've probably seen my videos."

"All of them." Josh admitted shyly. "I love them."

"Which one of them do you like the most?" Tyler asked.

"Actually the story time ones. I mean, your challenges are amazing but I like it when you talk about yourself." Josh said, taking a shaky breath and wiping his sweaty palms on his jeans. He felt better, but he still couldn't forget that _the Tyler Joseph_ sat next to him.

This was like his dream and worst nightmare happening at the same time.

"These videos are not very popular. The people like it when I look like an idiot in public." Tyler said and patted Josh back.

Josh could feel his skin getting hot where Tyler touched him and he blushed. "Yeah… I'm sorry for freaking out. It's just… I'm such a big fan and I never thought I'd meet you in real life." he explained and Tyler nodded.

"I get you." he leaned closer. "I met Brandon Flowers once and I almost shit my pants." he whispered and Josh let out a chuckle.

"Really?"

"Yeah. Of course I acted all cool and stuff, but on the inside…" he shrugged. "Pretty cool guy. Too bad he thinks being a youtuber is not a real job."

"It's a lot of work." Josh said, twisting his hands in his lap. He couldn't believe he was talking to his crush without throwing up (okay, he embarrassed himself and almost started crying in front of him but other than that he was doing great).

"It is." Tyler agreed. "Do you have a youtube channel?"

"Yeah, but, it's like, only drum covers. Not much else. Definitely not as successful as your channel." Josh bit his lip.

"You're a drummer? That's cool." Tyler said. "I'll check it out."

"W-what? Are you serious?" Josh stammered.

"Of course. You seem like a cool guy." Tyler looked like he didn't realize what big of a deal it was to Josh. "What's the name of your channel?"

"It's, uh, _I_want_to_believe_." Josh swallowed.

"Cool." Tyler said, seemingly unimpressed. "Are you hungry? There's a McDonald's over there that's opening up right now and we still have lots of time left until the boarding."

"O-okay." Josh grabbed his backpack and they grabbed some burgers and their drinks to sit down at a table.

"So… what are you doing here so early?" Josh asked shyly.

"I was in LA and now I'm on my way home. My uncle lives in Atlanta, so I thought it'd be nice to say hello on my way home. You?" Tyler took a bite of his burger, laughing when half of it fell down on his plate.

Josh stared at him as he licked the ketchup off his lips. He could feel the tug in his gut at the sight of Tyler's tongue swiping over those pretty pink lips. He was gorgeous.

"Josh?" Tyler said slowly and snapped Josh out of his thoughts.

"Oh, I visited a friend." Josh could feel his cheeks heat up when Tyler caught him staring and he took a sip of his sugar sweet drink to hide his embarrassment. "My, uh, my anxiety is really bad right now, so traveling alone is kinda hard for me, but it's only a 90 minute flight."

"You have anxiety?" Tyler leaned closer. "That's pretty tough and still here you are, all alone. That's pretty impressive."

"Well, you're here." Josh said and bit his lip.

"You were alone before I decided to scared you." Tyler argued. "Can I tell you something?"

"Of course." Josh nodded quickly.

"Don't tell anyone."

"Pinky promise." Josh said and lifted his hand. He was surprised to see Tyler lift his hand and link their pinkies.

"I don't want to do youtube anymore. I'm thinking about quitting."

"What?" Josh stared at him in shock. It felt like his heart was shattering. Imagine your favorite band breaking up - that's how Josh felt the exact same moment.

"I don't want to do it anymore. Try not to laugh challenge, try not to cringe challenge, ice bucket challenge, fortnite live streams, saying yes to all things for 24 hours videos, Disneyland vlogs, I did it all.... There's not much left I can do and it gets boring after a while, you know?" Tyler explained. "I wanna do music, maybe post some covers, but I don't think people would like to see that. I want to do something more serious."

"But… you can't just quit. What about your fans?" Josh knew he sounded pathetic, but he couldn't help it.

Tyler sighed, patting Josh's hand. Considering they were practically strangers, Tyler touched him a lot and still it wasn't enough. Josh knew he only had Tyler himself for so long and right now the news had crushed him.

"I won't quit right now. Maybe I won't quit at all. We'll see."

"You could ease some covers in between your other videos." Josh suggested. "This way people can get used to it and you can slowly turn your channel into a music channel."

"That's an amazing idea." Tyler looked at him in awe. "You're so smart."

"No, I'm not." Josh mumbled, blushing at Tyler's praise.

"You are. Anyway." Tyler started to gather up the wrappers and empty cups. "We need to get back to our gate."

 

Only a few minutes later it was time to say goodbye. Tyler, who had booked first class, could go on board earlier than Josh who had booked economy class.

"I better get going. I don't want people to recognize me." he explained as he grabbed a hat from his jacket and put it on. "It was nice to meet you, Josh."

"Yeah…" Josh agreed lamely. He didn't want to let Tyler go. Without thinking, he stepped forward and hugged Tyler.

Caught off guard, Tyler tensed up and Josh quickly retracted. "I-I'm sorry, I know you don't like being hugged by strangers, I'm sorry." he stuttered.

"It's okay. You just surprised me." Tyler smiled and pulled him into a hug. "Goodbye, Josh."

"Bye, Tyler." Josh mumbled and watched as Tyler disappeared into the plane.

He sighed when he realized he didn't even ask for a picture.

 

During the flight, all Josh could think of was Tyler. Tyler's eyes, Tyler's hands, Tyler's smile. Heck, even his stupid dad outfit had looked good on him.

When Josh left the plane, his family was already waiting for him. They hugged him and started talking to him, but Josh didn't listen. He looked around, hoping to catch a last glimpse of his favorite youtuber. Right when he wanted to give up, he saw Tyler walking towards the exit.

 _Run after him!_ Josh thought, but he couldn't move.

Before he stepped through the door, Tyler turned, looking back. When he spotted Josh, he grinned and waved before he turned and disappeared.


	2. Chapter 2

"Oh, Josh, it's so good to see you again!" Josh's mum said and pulled him into another hug.

"Mum, I've only been away for two weeks." Josh groaned.

"I know, but I know how bad your anxiety gets sometimes. I'm so proud of you." His mum finally let go of him and grabbed the handle of Josh's suitcase. "C'mon guys, let's go to the car."

Only a few minutes later, Josh sat in the middle of the backseat, squeezed in between Jordan and his sister Ashley. Josh's mom kept talking to him, but Josh couldn't concentrate on her words. He could only think of Tyler's smile and the fact that he had just met his idol.

It still felt like a dream, Tyler had been so nice and chill and he even spent time with Josh.

Jordan nudged his side. "Hey, Josh, are you even listening?"

"Huh?" Josh looked at him.

"Mum asked you a question." Jordan said. "You seem a little bit distracted right now. What happened?"

"I met Tyler Joseph!" Josh blurted out.

"Are you serious?" Jordan asked. He was also a fan of Tyler and he was the only one who knew Josh had a crush on him.

"Yeah. And he was so…" Josh sighed happily. "He was so nice to me and we talked and I still can't believe I met him."

"Tyler Joseph? Isn't he an actor or something?" Josh's dad asked.

"No, he's a youtuber." Josh explained, rolling his eyes. "Geez, I told you he's my biggest idol."

"So he does videos and stuff?" Bill glanced over his shoulder before looking at the road again.

"Yeah." Josh agreed. "But he's super successful. He has over 7 million subscribers and he makes so much money with his videos. Anyway, he took the same flight and we went to McDonald's. He said he'd check out my youtube channel."

"Did you ask for a picture?" Jordan asked, excited.

"I forgot. I was too nervous." Josh admitted.

"Don't expect too much." Bill said. "He probably forgot your face the second he left the plane."

"Ugh, thanks for your encouragement, dad." Josh said, a little bit pissed off. He didn't want to acknowledge the fact that his father was probably right and Tyler didn't care about him. He was just a fan, nothing more.

 

For the next three weeks, Josh was excited and nervous at the same time, but then his excitement turned into disappointment. Sure, he shouldn't have expected Tyler to actually contact him, but he at least could've said something in his videos about Josh, right?

Josh had been watching all the videos Tyler had posted since they met and he didn't even mention him. Just a comment below his drum covers would've been nice, Josh thought, but then he accepted the fact that he wasn't important to Tyler.

It didn't matter that he wished their meeting would've been different. He imagined Tyler being fascinated by him, telling him that he was the best fan he'd ever met, maybe even asking him out on a date.

Josh felt miserable until he woke up early on a Saturday morning. He always checked his phone right after he woke up and so when he unlocked his phone, his eyes still heavy from sleep, he needed a few seconds to comprehend the words on the screen.

Immediately, his hands started shaking when he read the message.

_hey, this is tyler, the guy you met at the airport. i watched your videos. do you wanna hang out?_

Josh rubbed his eyes with the heels of his hands, before looking at the screen again. Tyler Joseph dm'ed him on twitter. Tyler Joseph had watched his videos. Tyler Joseph wanted to hang out with him.

Josh wondered why Tyler knew about his twitter, but then he remembered leaving a link in his infobox underneath his videos.

He flinched when he realized that Tyler had messaged him just a few minutes ago. Maybe he was shit drunk or high right now. Or incredibly bored. Maybe it was a trap to make fun of him.

Josh didn't know but he knew there was no reason why Tyler would want to hang out with _him._

Didn't he have like, a million friends? Or other youtubers he collaborated with?

Josh didn't know how to respond. It was too good to be true and he didn't know if he could trust Tyler, so instead of being happy, his anxious mind told him the only thing that seemed logical at the moment, although it wasn't logical at all.

Josh's thumb seemed to move without his consent when he clicked on _Block._

 

Josh had done many stupid things in his life, but never ever had he been so stupid. It mostly happened when he panicked, but he always tried to brush it off afterwards.

This time, he was incredibly angry at himself. He ruined everything because he couldn't even have a conversation on social media with Tyler.

He had hoped for weeks to hear from him and when he finally did, he fucked up completely. Josh just wanted to hide in his room and cry. There was no way he'd have a chance with Tyler ever again.

He had thought about unblocking Tyler, but he was sure Tyler was already pissed. Josh wanted to unblock and message him, but he chickened out every time.

Josh felt miserable for a week, but either Tyler thought Josh had blocked him accidentally or he was naturally a very persistent person.

Josh was surprised to find out Tyler had messaged him again. This time, on instagram.

 _Bless social media._ Josh thought when he read the message, sitting on his bed.

_Josh? This is Tyler, again._

Josh knew this was his last chance, so he took a deep breath and responded.

**hi tyler. sorry for blocking you on twitter**

Only a few seconds later, Tyler typed back.

_What happened? Are you mad at me or something?_

**no… I panicked, im so sorry.**

_well, I watched your videos and I liked them, but I wanted to know if want to hang out with me? its okay if you don’t want to_

Josh released a shaky breath, clutching his phone in his hands tightly. Clearing his throat, he turned his head towards the door.

"Jordan! Get your ass over here, I need your help!" he called out.

A few moments later, the door opened and Jordan stepped in. "That's not a nice way to call me, you know?" he said.

"This is an emergency!" Josh explained.

Jordan raised an eyebrow and walked over to the bed. "Really? Did you accidentally send nudes to a friend or what?"

Josh slapped his arm. "Haha, very funny. No, it's Tyler. He wants to hang out with me."

"Tyler Joseph?" Jordan asked and sat down on the bed.

"Of course it's Tyler Joseph." Josh rolled his eyes. "He's the only Tyler I know."

"I thought you blocked him." Jordan furrowed his brows.

"I did. But he found my instagram and messaged me and I don't know what to do." Josh whined.

Jordan chuckled. "Just tell him you want to hang out?"

"It's not that easy." Josh huffed and stared at his phone angrily. Tyler was probably wondering why he didn't respond.

"Alright, give me your phone." Jordan said and Josh handed him the phone before burying his face in his hands. "Please don't embarrass me."

"I won't." Jordan assured him and started typing.

"Let me see." Josh said and crawled over to him, looking over his shoulder.

**that would be sick. when are you free?**

"See? It's easy." Jordan grinned and Josh felt relieved.

_What about now?_

Instantly, Josh began to panic. "Now? I… I can't hang out with him now."

"Why not?" Jordan looked at him. "It's Saturday morning and you have nothing else to do and you're going to daydream about him anyway, so isn't it better to stare at him with heart eyes in real life?"

Josh pushed him off the bed and Jordan yelped, before throwing the phone at Josh. Josh caught it and paled when he saw that Jordan had accidentally sent him another text message.

**ju7wkldf**

_what???_

**sorry my thumb slipped**

_…your thumb slipped…okay_

Josh groaned. He would make a fool out of himself in front of Tyler, he was sure.

His phone vibrated in his hand and he looked down.

_you're so weird, but I like it. do you have whatsapp?_

Josh replied and shortly later, Tyler was his new whatsapp contact. With a heart emoji next to his name of course.

"I'll go now. There's a video game waiting for me." Jordan said and walked towards the door when Josh grabbed his wrist and held him back.

"No, don't go! I can't hang out with him, this is going to be a disaster!" he said, tugging at his hair.

"Dude, calm down." Jordan sighed. "Pretend he's just a friend. He seems super chill and you already embarrassed yourself in front of him, so it can't get worse, right?"

"I guess…" Josh mumbled.

"And didn't you say he was super nice to you?"

"Yeah." Josh agreed and smiled when he thought of it.

"See? He likes you, that's why he wants to hang out with you. There's no need to worry, Josh." Jordan patted his shoulder before leaving the room. "You got this."

Tyler texted Josh his address and Josh was surprised to see he didn't live far away. He never knew Tyler lived so close to him. The youtuber had been very careful about sharing any personal information, so no one knew where he lived.

Tyler seemed to trust him enough to tell him this and Josh felt honored.

Grabbed his keys, he texted back.

_I'll be there in 10._

Josh wasn't nervous when he pulled into the driveway of Tyler's house (yes, he owned a house - and it was really big) - he was terrified. But he pulled himself together, at least he tried to and stepped out of the car.

The few meters to Tyler's porch seemed to take an hour to walk and Josh's hands were shaking when he rang the bell. His shirt already started sticking to him, because he was sweating so much, but when Tyler opened the door, everything else seemed unimportant.

He stood in front of Josh, shirt and sweats, a can of coke in his hand and a smile on his face.

"Josh! Come in, dawg."

Josh smiled nervously and stepped in, kicking his shoes off when Tyler told him to. The Youtuber closed the door and started to walk towards the living room.

Josh saw two guys splayed out across the couch, watching tv.

"Guys, this is Josh, the guy I met at the airport. Josh, these are my friends, Mike and Mark."

Josh waved shyly before he followed Tyler upstairs. "So, this is my room."

Josh had seen the room a thousand times, but standing in the middle of it felt surreal. He could see Tyler's basketball trophies, his posters and his CDs.

"Do you like it?" Tyler asked and Josh nodded.

"It's just… seeing it in real life is kinda weird."

"Oh, right." Tyler ran a hand through his hair. "You've seen it in my videos."

"I'm sorry if this feels weird to you." Josh said and nervously fiddled with his fingers. "I'm a big fan and that's maybe not a good start."

Tyler shrugged. "I don't mind. I mean, you don't steal my underwear or publish my address, right?"

"Of course not!" Josh said. He didn't know why he was blushing, but his cheeks turned pink. Maybe just Tyler's presence was enough to make him blush.

"That's good to know." Tyler grinned. He either didn't notice how nervous Josh was or he tried to make the situation feel as normal as possible. "Please, take a seat."

Since Tyler sat down on the only chair in the room, Josh sat down on the bed. He couldn't help but wonder how Tyler looked when he was sleeping. He probably looked adorable.

"So this is your house?" Josh asked and Tyler nodded, grabbing a second coke from the mini fridge right next to his desk.

"I bought it, but my friends live here too. Mark helps me a lot with the camera work and editing my videos. Do you want cherry or vanilla coke?"

Josh grimaced. "Vanilla coke? Are you serious?"

"What's wrong with vanilla coke?" Tyler asked.

"It tastes awful." Josh explained.

"That's not true." Tyler said and pretended to be offended. He hugged the can close to his chest. "Don't listen to Josh, Vanilla coke, he doesn't know what he's talking about."

"You're ridiculous."

"That's my job." Tyler grinned. "But I also have redbull if you want to."

"That would be great." Josh said. He was relieved that Tyler didn't take things too seriously. Tyler threw a can of redbull on the bed before he grabbed his laptop.

"Hey, do you want to see the new video I've been working on?"

Josh looked at him. "Are you serious?" Seeing an unreleased video no one else had seen before was something he'd always dreamt of.

"Of course." Tyler hopped on the bed, back against the headboard, laptop balanced on his lap. Josh slowly moved to sit beside him.

Tyler opened a video, but didn't press play yet. "It's a challenge I did with Mark. It's called 'Bad jokes'. We both tell each other dumb jokes and the other one has to try to keep a straight face."

"Okay." Josh said hoarsely. His skin was tingling where he felt Tyler's thigh pressed against his own.

The video was only a few minutes long, but Josh couldn't really concentrate on it. He was too busy looking at Tyler's hand and imagining to place his own hand on top of it, interlacing their fingers.

"What do you think?" Tyler asked after it.

"It's… it's good." Josh said, trying to recall what had happened in the video. "Can I… maybe see it again?"

"Sure."

This time, Josh actually payed attention and so he could give Tyler feedback afterwards.

"It's an amazing video, but I think it would be funnier if you'd zoom in randomly or put sound effects in it." he said.

Tyler bit his lip and Josh started to worry if criticizing Tyler's work had been the wrong thing to do. Tyler was a pro at Youtube, so to Josh it seemed kind of rude to just blatantly say his video wasn't funny enough.

"That's a good idea. I'll keep that in mind." Tyler said before he put the laptop back on the desk. Then, he sat down cross-legged on the bed, facing Josh.

"What was the first video of me that you saw?" he asked.

"Uh, it was one of your first videos, when you had way less subscribers." Josh explained. "I think it was some kind of a challenge, I don't remember what challenge, but I loved it and I've been watching your videos ever since."

Tyler nodded, completely focused on what Josh was saying. "I watched your drum covers. They're good. You're a beast on the drums."

Josh laughed nervously. "I'm not that good, though. There are a lot of people out there that are way better than me."

"Well, I think you need passion the make music and it looks like you love what you do. It's definitely a pleasure watching you play." Tyler said and Josh couldn't help but blush at Tyler's compliment.

Josh didn't feel uncomfortable around Tyler anymore and he could feel himself relax. Being with Tyler was fun and not awkward at all.

They talked some more, about their favorite youtubers, music and their families. Josh only noticed how late it already was when he saw that it was already dark outside.

"Crap, I should go." he said and stood up.

"Right." Tyler agreed and they walked to the door. Josh didn't want to leave, he liked hanging out with Tyler, so he hesitantly grabbed his shoes and tied his shoelaces as slowly as possible.

"I had fun today." Tyler said and Josh nodded.

"Me too."

"Maybe we can hang out again sometime?" Tyler asked hopefully and Josh grinned.

"I'd love to."

"Okay." Tyler smiled. "We can text, okay?"

Josh agreed and opened the front door. Before he left, he looked at Tyler. There was one more thing he needed to know.

"Why did you message me?"

"What do you mean?"

"I'm just a fan." Josh shrugged. "Everybody would like to hang out with you."

"Because I think you're a cool guy." Tyler explained. "You were so sweet and I wanted to know more about you. You're not just a fan, Josh."

"Oh." Josh felt a warmth spread in his chest. "Thank you, Tyler. For inviting me over."

"Thanks for hanging out with me." Tyler said and stepped forward, wrapping his arms around Josh in an awkward hug.

Josh hugged him back (maybe he held onto him for too long), but Tyler didn't seem to mind. Josh was almost sure he could see a faint blush on Tyler's cheeks when he stepped back, but it was too dark outside to see Tyler's face properly.

"Bye, Josh."

"Bye." Josh said and Tyler closed the door slowly.

Josh looked at the door for a few more seconds, before he turned and skipped to his car.

 

 

Josh almost had a heart attack when he watched Tyler's new video a few days later, sound effects included. He couldn't stop smiling for the rest of the day and his heart seemed to explode when Tyler texted him.

_do you like my latest video?_

**I love it! who came up with the idea of including sound effects?**

_a friend of mine, I think he's a secret youtube genius. you should talk to him sometime, he's a pretty amazing guy_

**haha, I hope so ;)**

They started to hang out more frequently and Josh even started to get featured in Tyler's challenges. He loved every second he spent with Tyler and cherished every single time he could make Tyler laugh. He looked so beautiful and it was hard for Josh not to get distracted by every single detail of Tyler's features.

He fell for Tyler, quickly and without being able to stop it. He didn't tell Tyler, though. He didn't want to scare Tyler off and destroy the friendship they had built up.

Tyler's subscribers soon got used to the now blue-haired boy that seemed to be constantly by Tyler's side. Some even decided to check out Josh's channel.

One day, during a "only eat candy for 24 hours" challenge, Josh asked him the thing he had wondered about for weeks. They laid on Tyler's bed, eating popcorn and cotton candy while filming.

"Why did you even talk to me at the airport?"

Tyler stopped shoving popcorn into his mouth and paused the camera.

"I saw your shirt."

"But you never talk to fans in public. There are only about twenty fans you took pictures with and you always try not to get recognized in public, so why did you decide to come up to me?"

Tyler cleared his throat. "Well, you caught my attention with your green hair. Then I saw your shirt and I knew you were a fan, but I didn't want to talk to you. You were on your phone and smiled and grinned, so whatever you were reading had to be funny. I got curious." he said, rubbing his arms awkwardly.

Josh blushed at the memory. "Yeah… it was, uh, funny."

Tyler bit his lip, glancing over at him. "You were reading fanfiction. About me, having sex with you."

"I know." Josh said, bright red. "I'm sorry."

Tyler avoided Josh's eyes for a few seconds, nervously looking around in his room. "Are you, uh, i-into boys? Since it was about, you know, gay sex."

"It was a gender neutral fic." Josh said slowly.

"Yeah, but it was about you and me and we're obviously two boys." Tyler explained quietly.

"Well…" Josh took a deep breath. Now or never. "I am gay."

"Oh." Tyler took a deep breath. "Okay."

"Does it weird you out?" Josh asked.

"No." Tyler shook his head, fiddling with the blanket on the bed. "I'm just, you know, uh…"

Josh was confused by Tyler's behavior. "You're…what?"

"Gay, too." Tyler blurted out and immediately tensed up.

"I thought you were straight." Josh said dumbfounded.

"I'm not." Tyler mumbled. "Never said I was. You just assumed."

"Oh." Now it was Josh who was surprised. "That's okay. I'm cool with it."

"And, uh." Tyler said and blushed. "I have to tell you something. Please don't be mad."

"I won't be mad, I promise." Josh said concerned. "I'm your best friend."

"Well, I lied." Tyler admitted. "I didn't talk to you because you were a fan. I talked to you because I thought you were cute and a-after we met at the airport I couldn't get you out of my head. I know it wasn't fair, but I was hoping you'd like to meet again because you were a fan and I thought I could use my fame to my advantage."

"Well, it worked." Josh chuckled. "I really wanted to see you again. You're my idol."

"But that's not what I want to be!" Tyler snapped and Josh flinched.

Tyler sighed. "I'm sorry. It's just… I don't want to be your idol."

"But why not? What do you want to be?" Josh asked.

Tyler closed his eyes for a second, taking a deep breath. "I want to be your boyfriend. I have a crush on you, Josh." he whispered.

Josh was shocked. The boy he was in love with just admitted to have a crush on him.

"I'm sorry." Tyler apologized when he saw Josh's face. "Shit, I fucked everything up. I'm so sorry, I shouldn't have told you, I-"

"Tyler." Josh grabbed Tyler's hands. "You didn't fuck up anything, okay? I love you, I've been in love with you for a long time and I can't believe this is happening."

"Are you serious?" Tyler asked with wide eyes.

"I am." Josh could feel tears well up in his eyes when he realized Tyler liked him back.

"I love you." Tyler whispered. "I was so scared to tell you."

"I was scared, too." Josh said and he could see Tyler's eyes were glistering with tears as well.

"Please kiss me." Tyler begged and Josh leaned forward to press his lips against Tyler's. Tyler placed a hand on his neck pulling him closer and it was cheesy and probably looked like they were trying to eat each other up, but to both of them it was perfect.

 

No one was surprised when Tyler posted a video of playing 'Can't help falling in love' on his ukulele for Josh. And no one was shocked when Tyler pecked Josh on the lips at the end of it, because it had been clear for a long time that they were in love.


End file.
